This project takes whiskers to a whole new level. To show off our new puppy in an adorable DIY frame, I combined my love for vintage products*, with some fantastic Whisker Graphics products. Read the rest of this entry
Ladies and Gents–step right up because Cirq Alpha is coming to town!
Loaded with spellbinding stars and breathtaking beasts, Paper Calliope’s circus train is sure to dazzle and delight you. Step up close and learn just how this spectacle was created.
I am sooooo excited to be featured as a guest artist at Alphas Stamps, that the over-the-top adjectives of the circus world do not even begin to describe how I feel. Since my journalism professor would roll over in his grave if he saw me using this superfluous language ( “Omit needless words, Betsy!”), I will move along and get right to the point. Read the rest of this entry
Even thought its March, I wanted to join in the fun of the 2015 Tim Holtz tags. Never one to just follow the rules, I decided to make two tags for each month–one a traditional Tim tag and one with a circus theme.
To be honest, i planned to actually provide you with a tutorial and supply list, but the world’s worst and longest lasting plague has kept me from accomplishing many of my plans.
So without further delay, here are my tags for March.
You’ve heard of Artist Trading Cards (ATCs) and Artrist Trading Blocks (ATBs), but I bet you never heard of the Artist Trading Spoons (ATS). Why? Because I just invented them!
To accompany the Robin’s Nest recipe themed blog hop, I decided to have some fun and create some retro ATSes featuring bold and fun mid-century graphics.
Some of you who live in temperature–sane parts of the world are already enjoying spring. It’s usually a different story here in the frozen tundra of Minnesota, where winter almost always lasts well into April.
To remind myself that spring will eventually come, I made this Golden Spring Artist Trading Block (ATB). Please check out the tutorial over at the Robin’s Nest. Read the rest of this entry
So, by now you probably know that I love making vintage circus art. It probably has a little something to do with the fact that my kids have gone to a circus performing arts school since the youngest was still in diapers. Yep, The Daughter™ hung from a trapeze, even before she was out of Pampers.
Aside from my kids’ involvement, I also like making circus-themed art because of the vibrant graphics and the endless opportunities for whimsy and creativity. Over the last week,I have been laboring over a special project that has been on my to-do list for a long, long while. It was finally time to make a paper calliope.
In order to recover from all that bad luck, we are travelling back in time for Day 10 of Paper Calliope’s 13 Days of October. Read the rest of this entry
There was a time during the 1940s to 1970s when some families got to experience the Golden Age of Travel. These were the days of roomy planes with curtained windows and hot meals; luxurious hotels with gloved bellhops; and even wood-paneled stationwagons with kids frolicking unbuckled in the back, while adults navigated empty interstates using a map from the Amoco station.
Ok, truth be told, I don’t remember most of those either. I am not prehistoric after all!.
My altered art box reflects how I imagine some mid-century Americans families spent their holidays during this era You can read more about this altered art box, see a tutorial on how to make it and even find out what it has in common with Oprah by visiting my post at the Robin’s Nest.
The Robin’s Nest recently gave a challenge to think outside the box when creating greeting cards. Since I don’t think a box exists that contains enough nooks, crannies, twists and turns to hold my little ol’ brain, this seemed like the perfect challenge.
I love creating three-dimensional and interactive cards such as explosion cards, pop-up cards and cards with secret compartments. (I also like creating irreverent cards with vintage images, but The Robin’s Nest might not want their upstanding name associated with that). At the same time, I think a lot of manufacturers would like designers to get back to the basics and offer tutorials that crafters can complete without an engineering degree, $47K in specialized tools and a tattoo of Tim Holtz’s autograph on their arse.*
With that in mind, I created a three-dimensional card that can be completed in one sitting, requires no special tools and remains flat enough to be mailed in a regular envelope. Read the rest of this entry
